A small job, A new life
by TheJacxter
Summary: When you're a young thief, a small job can become a nightmare. When you're a monster, a new life may not mean what you'd expect. The Intel was good... Entry for Decembre2014 MonCon


"Hurry up man!"

The shattered glass had spread all over the ground. That brand was meant to break of into small bead sized balls of glass meant to be easily cleaned up. Normally, a good broom sweeping and, other then the now missing glass panes on the living room table, no one would have noticed a thing. Normally, there was no spreading pool of blood clinging onto the glass shards. Normally, there was no dead woman lying in the center of an apartment living room. Things hadn't gone the way they did _normally_.

The Intel had been good. They kept a spare key under the rock that was hidden by a small bush in front of the apartment complex. Nearly every one in the building had left to celebrate the holidays with loved ones. The only inhabitants left were the old lady living on the second floor and the bachelor on the top suite. The old lady was blind and nearly deaf, not a problem. The bachelor had a bad drinking habit and was sleeping off the alcohol. The Intel was good.

Why was she there? Why had the woman been in suite 42b? It was supposed to be easy. The husband was an investigative reporter on the verge of breaking down the underworld of Vacuo. Their employer was ready to pay vasts amounts of money for all his evidence to be destroyed. A bit of vandalism and a red paint messages on the walls, added to the breaking and entering and theft of all his investigation material, and the husband would've never dared to pick up the subject again. Problem solved!

The woman had come from nowhere, screaming like a crazy person. They had all stood there, stunned. She hit Johnny in the back of the head with a flower vase, that had sealed her fate. Roman had moved with a brutal efficiency, a flick of the wrist and she came crashing down on the glass table of the living room. The sight of the knife in her throat had spurred them back to life. Rick had set fire to the office, while Tom and James and helped Johnny up and gotten out of the apartment. Rick was standing on the porch screaming at him.

"THE FIRE'S SPREADING! Hurry up man! We got to go"

Roman just stood there, looking at the dead body and slowly growing pool of blood. It made no sense. The family car had left 10 minutes ago. They were supposed to go to a gala where her husband was going to tease the release of his investigative piece. Why would his wife still be there... Especially on New Year's Eve? He ignored Rick cursing him as he fled the scene. He squatted down by the woman, ignoring the disturbing mix of squishing and crunching sounds that the blood soaked glass made under his shoes. There was supposed to be no death that night, the payoff was going to make him enough money to leave this life behind... No small feat for a young debt crippled man of 19 years.

The ever growing fire from the husbands office lit up the face of the woman. The look on her face, the fear in her eyes, burned into his retina. Something was wrong, he looked at her eyes closer as the fire was getting close to the living room. Her eyes held fear but not the one fear you experience when you fear for yourself, that look he knew to well, no, her eyes held the fear you have for someone elses well being. In her death throws on the table she had stretched he hand out towards the corridor she'd jumped out of. Her eyes looked that way. Roman's heart rose to his throat.

He found her in her room at the end of the hallway, staring up with pink and brown eyes from her crib. She was barely one and her eyes held so much innocent curiosity for the strange red headed man. He felt hot tears burn his cheeks as he smiled at her. With the most caring he'd ever shown another living being, he picked her up and she smiled at him. He felt like his soul was tearing apart. She had a fever.

That was why she had been there, to take care of her young girl. The husband had probably wanted to stay too, he already imagined her telling him he couldn't miss such important event... That they'd be fine... That, if he hurried, he might even make it home before midnight. Roman had killed before, even tortured, but, this was nothing he'd experienced before, never like this, he'd become a monster.

The flames were now roaring in the living room and he couldn't reach the door of the apartment. He ran to the balcony and, when he opened the door, he realized he was still carrying the child. As he stepped onto the balcony, debating what to do with the girl, bells rang in the distance and he froze, it was New Year. The plan was to be rich and out of this kind of life... The plan had failed miserably. He had wished a new life for the new year. He had gotten his wish.

"A new life huh... Well, let's go home Neo"

He vanished into the darkness.


End file.
